Fate/EXTRA Last Encore – 05

Ah, at last we get some confirmation. This week, we are told more or less explicitly what the relationship is between the Fate/EXTRA videogame and Last Encore: we are almost a millenium in the future. That will explain why nothing about this setting is as we knew it (though perhaps the canon of the Fate/EXTRA Holy Grail war has changed as well; more on this in later episodes, I’m sure).

For those of you who have not played the original game before jumping in this anime, it’s looking more and more like you really should have, but that’s no fault of yours. We’ll try to talk more about the game’s continuity here for those who need to catch up. 999 years ago, Dan Blackmore was a former soldier and knight of the United Kingdom. In that Holy Grail War, he was pretty big on the whole chivalry thing, forbidding his servant, the Archer formerly known as Robin Hood. In fact, the way the two fight in Last Encore is reversed from how they were in the game; Robin Hood’s style was to use his poison and stealth tricks to assassinate the enemy Master, while Blackmore insisted on facing the enemy Servant head on. Because chivalry and blah. But now, after a thousand years of brooding, it’s like this. We know why there’s such a role reversal; this ‘floor master’ is less Dan Blackmore and more the ghost of Dan Blackmore. There are none left in SE.RA.PH but resentful spirits (and we ask, what is Hakuno?). That’s an interesting turn, because the Servants are but spirits too, and they try to keep the ideals of their Masters alive after death. Shinji, in Fate/EXTRA, died quickly and miserably, so in Last Encore attempts to create a city where Masters like him can live. Drake helped him, vain though it was, and at least helps him die with dignity. Blackmore, in Fate/EXTRA, was torn between his duty to his country, his sense of honour, and his feelings for his dead wife, and that ultimately defeats him. In Last Encore, he is only after victory. Robin Hood helps him, vain though it is, while seeking glory in combat. This continuation makes Last Encore feel like a much more appropriate sequel to Fate/EXTRA than whatever Fate/Extella ended up being, in theme if nothing else. I don’t know if Nasu is still doing the Dante’s Divine Comedy thing, and SE.RA.PH is arguably more Purgatorio than Paradiso, but there the second sphere of heaven was for those who did good out of ambition, lacking in the virtue of justice. Make of that what you will.

One thing I’m unsure what to make of: Rin. Her counterpart in the videogame, Rani, has properly died like a good martyr, but Rin remains. She’s definitely more than just some Master hanging around, and I won’t speculate here, but we keep losing track of her for long stretches of time, which is definitely suspicious. If something is going to shake up the stratum-by-stratum-formula we’ve had so far, it’s her.

With the reveal of that Saber from the original war as Hakuno’s servant and it becomes clear this is another alternate route of the story just as Extella branched from its own take of Extra+CCC, CCC itself, and CCC Foxtail where said Saber was the servant of another master. A world where the spirits of the dead lingered on losing an aspect of their personslity due to the Moon Cell disregarding emotion, and the countless deaths of Hakuno. A device that has become more of a hell for those within than an alien machine made to record all of human history.

Not surprising. The Moon Cell regularly develops emotions itself along with its AIs and the computers respionse is to always delete it.

It is also nice that Robin Hood own desire to fight honorably could be realized as well. Having his master constantly restrict him because his old habits kept them from what they both wanted. Now he fought with the intent of honor as he also desired out of volition and respect to Blackmore.

Anyway, the anime Hakuno feels like the most impressive Type Moon character to me, sort of hope that the Hakuno in Fate/Extra CCC Fox Tail was this cool, I also want the heroine to get a kiss soon in that manga.

Honestly they probably use that running style because it seems easy for animation. Just have those arms hanging back there. Probably a lot more work that no one wants to do with having people pumping their arms to run as they normally would.

While the running style could be an animation issue, as FlareKnight may presume, its is actually a deep rooted Japanese convention. Samurai would run like that with when they had their weapons drawn, because their swords were too damn long and it helped with balance. And so that style of running became associated with martial arts. If you’re familiar with, say, Naruto, all the ninja run like that, even in a still medium like manga. It’s just kinda stuck, and has become the conventional way to portray high-level running in Japanese fiction. It looks faster (because of aerodynamics) even though it isn’t, and it looks more suitable for combat (because of smaller profile) even though it isn’t, so the convention has never been shaken.

I like that we’re getting answers, but the mystery is still deepening in a way. Some huge details such as scenes that very much look like what happened in the Fate/Extra game. Last week we got the timeline, this one we get more understanding of what has happened. It was kind of sad seeing Dan like this. He was basically a broken ghost. It was kind of him, but not really. And the end result was a massive slaughter.

What is curious though is that Shinji’s situation didn’t seem to be the same. We saw him win his fight and the ladder descend. He just didn’t take it and instead was made a Floor Master. I will say that this remains the best version of Shinji. I mean that guy kept up doing what he could with that city for a 1000 years. He at least gave those people the chance to live peacefully. Though I’m getting the impression that after thousands of years of being stuck like that…And either way anyone still alive died when Hakuno beat Shinji.

Rin is really suspicious, no doubt about that. Guess we’ll see if she’s friend or foe as time goes along.

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